A MINIBUS belonging to a county charity has been stolen during a break-in at a garage in Kingstone.

The maroon-coloured bus, owned by Dore Community Transport, was taken from John Watkins Car Repairs on Gooses Foot Industrial Estate between 9.40pm on Saturday and 8am yesterday morning.

The garage was broken into via the back door and it is believed that tools and car parts worth more than £3,000 were loaded into the bus before it was driven away.

"Whoever carried out thiws burglary not only stole a large amount of equipment from the garage, but they also caused thousands of pounds worth of damage," said PC Ben Jones.

"However, the most appalling aspect of this crime is the theft of a vehicle used by local volunteers to help some of the most vulnerable people in the community who are unable to use public transport.

"We need to find out who has done this and I would urge anyone who has seen the minibus or knows anything at all about this burglary to contact us."

The vehicle's registration plate is VK62 ELV.

Anyone with information can call PC Jones on 0300 333 3000, quoting reference 164-S-120513.